Adherent DBT Program

Adherent DBT Program

The Institute provides two types of DBT programs: Adherent DBT and DBT-informed treatment. Adherent DBT consists of 4 critical components that correspond to the evidence-based model developed and researched by Dr. Marsha Linehan and her colleagues at the University of Washington.

Adherent DBT consists of 4 components:

• Individual Psychotherapy with a therapist who has training in DBT: weekly sessions with a member of our DBT psychotherapy team.
• DBT Skills Training Group: weekly group sessions for skills training and review. There are 5 skills modules: Mindfulness; Distress Tolerance; Emotional Regulation; Interpersonal Effectiveness; Middle Path.
• Skills Coaching by phone: in-between sessions, our DBT therapists are available for phone consultation to provide skills coaching when strong emotions and harmful urges arise.
• Consultation Team: Each member of the DBT team meets regularly with other team members for collaboration and support.

DBT is considered adherent to the original evidence-based model when all four components are in place. When an individual chooses to participate in the Institute’s adherent DBT program, she is expected to participate in individual therapy, a skills training group, and skills phone coaching. The treatment team’s responsibility is to provide these services and to participate in the weekly team consultation meeting. We understand that DBT requires personal dedication, sacrifice, and effort in order to gain the benefits. Our Application and Assessment Process will help you and us determine if this is the right program for you at this time in your or your family’s life. Click here for more information about the Application and Assessment process.

For the Adherent Program:

All services must be received at the Institute. All treatment components are mandatory.

For Middle School and Teen Participants: Parents/Guardians are required to participate in a Skills Training Group if the daughter is in a Middle School or Teen DBT program. Parents/Guardians may also benefit from DBT-informed parent coaching, available at the Institute.

WHO MIGHT BENEFIT FROM ADHERENT DBT?

Middle school girls, teen girls, and young adult women (ages 12-28) who are experiencing the following difficulties:

A Message from Dr. Melissa Johnson:

Here at the Institute, we’re dedicated to empowering girls, women, families, and circles of community. We are excited by current research, including neuroscience, as we implement best practices in assisting girls to grow – in families, through education, and in our global community. Through psychological services, educational workshops, mentorship, and our professional training programs, we seek to build skills and relational connections while advocating for positive social change at school, online, at work and in life. Helping girls grow in mindfulness, happiness, and hardiness, in self-compassion and community, in finding the courage to be true to themselves and allies with others – this is the journey. Sometimes people ask, “why do you do what you do?” Each of us at the Institute has our own unique and impassioned story to tell about why we do what we do. Bottom line, we do it because it matters. It matters for our girls, our boys, our selves, and our world.